SMS Campaign Registry Requirements for Sangoma UCaaS and SIPStation Customers

Overview

As of March 31st, 2023, all SMS and MMS messaging traffic sent by users of Sangoma’s UCaaS platforms (Business Voice, Business Voice+, Switchvox Cloud, PBXact UCC), as well as sent via Sangoma’s SIP Trunking platform SIPStation to United States-based mobile numbers, must be registered with The Campaign Registry^TM [1]. CommUnity users using Native SMS will need to take action in the future, please refer to the FAQ question for CommUnity specifics.

All SMS and MMS messaging that originates from users of Sangoma’s UCaaS and SIPStation services is considered, by The Campaign Registry (TCR), to be Application-to-Person (A2P) messaging.

Per the rules of The Campaign Registry (TCR), as enforced beginning March 31st, 2023, Application-to-Person (A2P) SMS and MMS message traffic may not be delivered to US-based end user mobile devices unless the message traffic is properly registered as a campaign. Sangoma and our interconnecting partners will be completely unable to troubleshoot message delivery of unregistered campaigns beginning March 31st, 2023.

Sangoma has established a TCR portal for all of our UCaaS and SIPStation customers, that administrative-level users of these services must access and complete prior to March 31st in order to properly register SMS and MMS campaigns to ensure successful delivery of messages. Failure to properly register campaigns means that SMS and MMS message traffic may not be delivered to US-based mobile users.

For more information, please reference theBusiness Voice & CPaaS SMS Campaign Registration (10DLC) User Guide.

Background

In 2021, Mobile carriers in the United states reorganized their SMS services as so-called 10-digit long code (10DLC) services to create a more reliable service for businesses (brands) to reach individual customers (end users).

Then, in 2022, these mobile carriers, in an attempt to eliminate unwanted text-based SPAM and phishing, organized an entity called The Campaign Registry (TCR). Participating Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) include AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, ClearSky, Interop Technologies, and USCellular.

The Campaign Registry requires registration by the companies that send A2P SMS messages and imposes fees on those companies for the use of 10DLC service.

The Campaign Registry interfaces with companies such as Sangoma, which provides a messaging platform via our UCaaS and SIPStation services. Through Sangoma’s TCR Portal, Sangoma facilitates the creation and management of campaigns (outbound SMS and MMS messages) for our brand customers (you), and we supply the information that you provide us about your campaigns to The Campaign Registry for their verification.

When the campaign information is properly supplied, verified, and accepted by The Campaign Registry, TCR then allows the SMS and MMS message traffic that you pass through Sangoma to be delivered to end customer mobile devices.

If the campaign information is not properly supplied, verified, or accepted, SMS and MMS traffic that your users send using Sangoma UCaaS or SIPStation platforms may be blocked by the mobile carriers. Sangoma is not able to override or troubleshoot this blocking; campaigns must be properly registered beginning March 31st, 2023.

The Campaign Registry has required fees. Sangoma’s TCR Portal collects money from you, the user of Sangoma’s UCaaS and SIPStation platform, and remits that money to The Campaign Registry on both a one-off and monthly basis, depending on the campaign type. Sangoma applies a small markup on top of the TCR fees in order to support the ongoing maintenance of our TCR Portal and to offset payment fees.

These TCR required fees are not included in the charges that you otherwise pay to Sangoma for UCaaS and/or SIPStation services. They are a separate charge from Sangoma.

Your Actions to Take

As a Sangoma customer, upon receipt or reading of this message, if you are currently using or intend to send any SMS/MMS messages using your Sangoma UCaaS or SIPStation services, you must immediately empower one of your administrative users to visit the Sangoma TCR Portal register your campaigns.

A campaign is any SMS/MMS messaging that you will send to an end user (a person’s mobile phone) from any of your Sangoma UCaaS or SIPStation services.

If you are a Sangoma Wholesale Services (formerly VoIP Innovations) customer, you may instead utilize the TCR portion of your Sangoma Wholesale Services portal.

For everyone else, visiting the TCR portal, you will need to:

1. Know what type of Sangoma platform you are using: Business Voice and Business Voice+, Switchvox Cloud, PBXact UCC, SIPStation, or CommUnity using native SMS.

2. Have ready your:

• Legal Business Name (exact match, properly spelled, consistent with your Internal Revenue Service records)

• Business Type (Public, Private, Not for Profit, Government)

• Country of Registration

• Federal Business ID (9-digit EIN for US-based customers, Corporation # for Canadian-based customers)

• Business Address (consistent with your Internal Revenue Service or taxation records)

• City, State/Province, and Postal Code

• Primary Business telephone number (may be used for verification purposes)

• Business website

• Stock symbol (Public companies only)

• Business/Industry vertical or classification

• Support email address

• Support telephone number

• SMS use cases

• SMS consent method

• Opt-in keywords

• Opt-in message

• Opt-out keywords

• Opt-out message

• Help keywords

• Help message

• Three sample messages (all three are required)

4. Provide all of the business numbers (DIDs) that will be sending and receiving messages.

5. Provide a credit card to which Sangoma will post the registration and ongoing campaign charges.

It is extremely important that all of this information be completely correct. If any of this information is incorrect, the application will be rejected by The Campaign Registry. Each application carries with it an application fee that Sangoma will charge to you. If an application is rejected, you will receive an email, at the address used when registering for the TCR Portal, notifying you of the rejection and you will need to manually resubmit. If the campaign is rejected, Sangoma is not the vetting party and is not responsible for the correctness of your application.

The Campaign Registry requires time to register a company (brand) when creating a new campaign. As we approach the deadline, it is reasonable to assume that TCR will be inundated with requests and their time to approve a campaign will lengthen. Sangoma does not have any ability to speed up TCR registration processes nor to determine how far along in the process a request is. Do not wait until the last minute; act now!

The charges for TCR campaigns are not included in the charges that you otherwise pay to Sangoma for UCaaS and/or SIPStation services. This is a separate bill.

If you will not engage in any SMS/MMS messaging to US-based numbers, you do not need to use this portal or register any campaigns.

The charges for TCR campaigns cannot be billed to you outside of our portal. Sangoma has many billing systems for each of its various services. The TCR requirements are complex and frequently changing. To mitigate the risk of manipulating all of our billing systems on such a frequent basis, we are billing for TCR exclusively out of this portal, charged to the credit card you provide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Who needs to register the campaign? An end customer, or their reselling partner?

A: The campaign can be registered by either, provided all of the information is correct. Sangoma will bill the credit card of the person/company that creates the campaign registration request in our TCR portal.

Q: Can more than one customer, each sending messaging using their own campaign, be registered under a single umbrella campaign? Or, can I register other customers who aren’t me, under my own name?

A: No. More than one company cannot be registered under the same campaign. Each company that has employees that are sending messages must be registered under its own distinct registration - registration must be done per-brand (company).

Q: If I improperly register multiple companies under the same brand, or use a campaign for use cases other than what I specified, what will happen?

A: The Campaign Registry will suspend outbound SMS messages for your DIDs and will remove your campaign privileges.

Q: Can a single login to Sangoma’s TCR Portal register multiple brands? Multiple campaigns?

A: A single login can register multiple brands and multiple campaigns.

Q: If I register a campaign and the content of the messaging does not line up with the stated purpose of the campaign, will this cause any problems? Should I register a new campaign?

A: If the purpose of your campaign changes and the content of the messaging changes, you will need to register a new campaign. Sangoma cannot provide specific guidance on the TCR consequences of creating a campaign with one stated purpose and sending messaging of a different purpose.

Q: Can Sangoma register the campaign for me so that I don’t have to?

A: No, Sangoma cannot do this. Specific knowledge about the campaign that is only held by the customer sending the messages is required. Further, the charges imposed by TCR are specific to the type of campaign being run, which creates variability that Sangoma’s normal UCaaS and SIPStation billing does not account for.

Q: How long does TCR take to register a company and approve a brand?

A: The process can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks.

Q: Are other UCaaS and SIP Trunking providers subject to the same TCR rules (registration, fees, etc.) as Sangoma?

A: Yes. This is not unique to Sangoma. All companies that provide a platform allowing the sending/receiving of SMS are subject to approval from The Campaign Registry if they want to be able to reliably deliver messages to any of the participating mobile providers. Currently, the three largest US-based providers AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, as well as others, all participate. More are being added.

Q: What if I have an issue when trying to use Sangoma’s TCR portal, who do I contact for Support?

A: If you have an issue with Sangoma’s TCR portal, please use the contact details located at the bottom of the TCR portal page.

Q: What if I have a question that’s not otherwise answered in this article, this FAQ, on Sangoma’s TCR portal, or by the help contact contained on that page?

A: First, please read this article carefully. Then, please visit Sangoma’s TCR portal. If you still have questions that we have not otherwise answered, you may contact Sangoma’s Support department or your Account Manager.

Q: If Sangoma is not providing me SMS/MMS service, and perhaps I am a non-SIPStation FreePBX, PBXact, or Asterisk user who is using someone else for SMS, can I use Sangoma’s TCR portal?

A: No. Sangoma’s TCR portal is only for our customers, for whom Sangoma is handling SMS/MMS messaging today. If you attempt to register campaigns against non-Sangoma DIDs, you may create problems with your non-Sangoma messaging provider.

Q: What will happen to my messages if I fail to register my campaign?

A: If you fail to register your campaign, beginning on March 31st, 2023, your messages may fail to be delivered. Your users sending messages will not know that the delivery has failed due to an unregistered campaign. Sangoma and its interconnection partners will be unable to troubleshoot the failure. Further, our experience is that TCR enforcement and adoption is increasing amongst the mobile providers, so messaging via unregistered campaigns will become less and less likely to work as time goes on.

Q: Is an extension, delaying the deadline beyond March 31st, 2023, available?

A: No. This deadline is imposed by our interconnecting partners and is applicable across the industry. It is not subject to movement by Sangoma.

Q: If I only receive messages, but never send, do I have to register a campaign?

A: If you only receive messages and never send, you do not have to register a campaign. If you send any messages, even something short like “OK” as a response to a message you get from an end user, then you should register a campaign.

Q: Are there any non-use fees charged by any of the mobile network operators?

A: T-Mobile announced that, effective February 1st, 2023, that they would charge a $250 monthly, recurring non-use fee for a campaign that has no traffic during a rolling 60-day period. So far, Sangoma has not seen this fee be actively applied. Sangoma recommends sending a message once/month to a T-Mobile recipient for each campaign to avoid the potential of this fee.

Q: Are SMS messages sent to short codes affected by The Campaign Registry?

A: No. The Campaign Registry is only for A2P messaging to 10DLC (regular mobile numbers, e.g. 205-555-1234) and not messaging to short codes.

Q: Which CommUnity users are impacted?

A: At present, none. CommUnity users using the old, deprecated ZipWhip platform are not impacted. CommUnity users who are presently on the newer “Native SMS” capability of CommUnity are not impacted today. But, Sangoma is in the process of transitioning its Community “Native SMS” users to different SMS messaging technology, and all users of ZipWhip will eventually transition to Native SMS. When the transition happens for Native SMS, and when ZipWhip service is discontinued, Sangoma will provide advance notice to our customers, and all CommUnity users will be impacted, and must register their campaigns.

Q: If I send to international numbers, not US-based numbers, do I have to register a campaign?

A: No. The Campaign Registry presently concerns itself only with delivery of messages to US-based numbers for the participating mobile operators which today includes AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, ClearSky, Interop Technologies, and USCellular.

Q: Once accepted by The Campaign Registry, is my campaign subject to any message limits?

A: Yes. Each carrier has its own limits. For our UCaaS platforms and SIPStation, our customer usage of SMS doesn’t typically exceed the limits imposed by the carriers. Customers of our wholesale service offerings do occasionally run above the limits. At present, the default for T-Mobile is 2000 daily messages per brand, and the default for AT&T is 240 messages per minute. Verizon does not publicly define limits at this time. If customers wish to send messages above those limits, then The Campaign Registry imposes additional vetting requirements.

Notes/Links

[1] - Homepage